Redress of Grievances (5 page)

"I've
been known to drink more than my share, and dear old Mom and Dad stuck me in
rehab once a couple of years ago."

"For
drinking?"

"Coke,"
he answered shaking his head. "But I've kicked that now. Found a better
way to get high."

"And
what is that?"

"Fuckin'
women," Wilkes smiled broadly. "I like women. Very intoxicating. That's
a nice perfume you're wearing, by the way. What is it?"

"According
to the detective's report, you were seen with each of these girls on the night
they died. And they have a hair and semen type match on all four that matches
your hair and semen. I assume you have an explanation for that."

"Look,
I said I might have slept with them. That doesn't mean I killed them."

"You
like your sex a little kinky, Jared?"

"What
do you mean by kinky?" Wilkes asked looking surprised by the question.

"Come
on, Jared. Into any S&M, leather, whips, that kind of thing?"

"Is
that what turns you on?"

"My
sex life isn't in question. Before we go any further, there's one thing you
should know, Mr. Wilkes."

"Yeah?
What's that?" Wilkes smiled.

"If
you expect me to represent you in court, you can't bullshit me. You have to
tell me the absolute truth. Nothing you tell me can ever be repeated by me to
anyone. If you told me right now that you're guilty as hell, I couldn't tell
anyone. So I want you to cut the crap, and tell me the truth. If you're not
willing to do that, find yourself another lawyer. So far you're not impressing
me, if that's what you've been trying to do. I've been a practicing adult a
long time, and there's not much that shocks me anymore."

Jared
finished his cigarette and crushed it out in an ashtray on the table without
looking at Harriett. She saw his jaw muscle tighten and relax.

"What's
it going to be, Mr. Wilkes? I have plans for the weekend and would like to get
the hell out of here."

"Okay,
I'll tell you the truth, Ms. Markham. I've been a pain in the ass since I was
born. Always in trouble and guilty more often than not. I admit to drinking too
much and using drugs on occasion, but I'm not a murderer. I knew all of those
girls, and I had sex with them, but I didn't kill them. I should have gone to
the police voluntarily after Lydia and Tiffany were killed, but they were both
underage, and I didn't want to get slapped with a statutory charge. But I guess
that would have been better than a rape and murder charge."

"Didn't
you think it was unusual that four girls you'd slept with all wound up
dead?"

"Of
course, but there are plenty of others I scored with who are still alive to
talk about it. Maybe someone followed me and killed those girls after I left
them."

"Do
you have an alibi for where you were after you left them?"

"Not
one that anyone would believe. All I can tell you is that I didn't kill those
girls."

"Okay.
Let me look over what else the police have, and I'll make a decision by Monday
about whether I'll take your case. Do they have you separated from the other
prisoners here?"

Jared
lowered his head and nodded. "I just want to get out here," he
mumbled.

"Unless
the police suddenly discover another suspect that probably isn't going to
happen for quite a while."

Chapter
Four

BY
THE TIME Harriett pointed her BMW north toward the Texas-Oklahoma border, it
was almost dark. Despite the fact that it was a long weekend, traffic was
light, and she made good time. Ninety minutes later, she crossed the Oklahoma
border not far from Lake Texoma. For over twenty years, her father had owned a
fishing cabin on the lake. When Farley Markham died, he left the cabin to her.
She had accompanied her father to the cabin many times, and she had nothing but
good memories of the times the two of them had spent there. Over the years, the
cabin had fallen into some disrepair. Farley hadn't made many trips after
Harriett left home and had let annual repairs slide. Since his death, she had
expended a tidy sum to have the chimney re-bricked and the exterior of the
cabin repaired and weatherproofed. In the last two or three years, she had
slowly refurbished the two bedroom cabin to the point where a person could
probably inhabit it year round. She thought that one day she might retire to the
cabin, but for now, it was her private getaway to stabilize her hectic life.
She wished she could make more than three or four trips a year.

As
she turned off the main road and onto a gravel side road, she was eager to get
into the safety of the cabin. Following the road along the edge of the lake,
she saw lights in the cabin windows and a wisp of smoke floating lazily from
the chimney. The sun was setting; and the evening sky held hints of cooler
weather, and the smell of distant rain was in the air. She loved the smell of
impending rain, with its promise to wash everything away and make it fresh and
clean again. She let her vehicle roll to a stop on the grass in front of the
cabin and got out. The lake was as smooth as glass in the moonlight. Good fishing
night, she thought. A short fishing pier jutted out into the water, and in the
quiet, Harriett could hear the water lapping against its pilings. As she stared
out over the water and felt its calmness soothe her, a beam of light cut into
the darkness from behind her. Turning her head, she saw Alex's silhouette
standing on the porch, the light from inside the cabin creating a halo around
her body. The idea of Alex as an angel brought a smile to Harriett's lips for
nothing could have been further from the truth. The silhouette moved across the
porch and down the steps toward her as she resumed gazing out over the water. A
minute later she felt Alex's arms slip around her waist, pulling her closer,
making her feel safe and wanted. As she turned in Alex's arms, she could make
out the fine features of her lover's face.

"You're
late," Alex whispered.

"It's
your fault."

Running
her hand along Harriett's neck, Alex kissed her gently. "I've fixed
dinner," she said.

As Harriett
entered the front door, she saw candles flickering on the coffee table and two
place settings. Soft instrumental music flowed from the stereo. Alex carried
Harriett's overnighter into the bedroom and then busied herself with putting
food on plates for them. Alex enjoyed eating by candlelight and, although no
one would have guessed it from her formal demeanor at the office, was a
romantic at heart.

Alex
and Harriett had been clandestinely seeing each other for three years and it
was a relationship they both enjoyed, intellectually as well as physically.
Harriett made no demands on Alex, and Alex made no promises. Alex would never
leave her partner of almost twenty years, and Harriett would never ask her to.
At forty-four, Alexis Dunne wasn't happy with her life but had accepted it for
what it was. Harriett had thrown herself into her career after her brother and
sister-in-law had been killed in an automobile accident four years before,
leaving her as the sole guardian of their two-year-old daughter. The last thing
she had wanted or sought was something to complicate her life.

She
and Alex had grown close while handling a particularly arduous case three years
earlier. Alex's partner, Gwen, had been out of town when the case concluded,
and Alex and Harriett had held an impromptu celebration that ended intimately.
Harriett hadn't seriously been with another woman since law school, and rearing
Lacey had taken up all of her time away from the office. She had missed having
someone to hold her, to love her and had been ripe for an intimate
relationship. The times Harriett spent with Alex were never more than what they
were, pleasurable and passionate without the worry of future complications.

After
dinner, Harriett dragged a pillow from the couch and sat on the rug in front of
the fireplace, watching the flames lick at the crackling logs. Alex sat in a
chair behind her and leaned back, as they relaxed in the soft cocoon of
firelight and music.

"Did
Lacey get to your mother's all right?"

"Yes.
I spoke to her before I saw Wilkes."

"What
do you think about him?"

"I
don't know whether I want the case, Alex," Harriett finally said.

"Then
don't take it," Alex said softly. "The final choice is yours."

"He
swears up and down that he's innocent, but they all say that. There's just
something creepy about him, but I can't exactly put my finger on what it
is."

"Creepy
in what way?"

"He's
got some pretty unusual ideas about sex. Finally admitted he had slept with all
four girls, but claims they were alive and satisfied when he left them. It
might have been someone out to get his father, but that sounds ludicrous."

"That'd
be a tough sell," Alex said, leaning forward and kissing the top of
Harriett's head.

Turning
to look at Alex's face, Harriett asked, "Do you think I'm submissive in
bed?"

Alex
laughed slightly. "God! What a question, Harriett."

"Wilkes
said tonight that sex was the ultimate act of submission on a woman's part.
She's flat on her back, open and vulnerable, placing complete trust in her
partner."

"I
think it's elementary that lovers have to trust one another."

Harriett
sat up and smiled at Alexis. "Why are you always so logical?"

"I'm
not, or I wouldn't be here now."

"I'm
glad you are."

Harriett
looked back at the fire, rubbed her hands over her arms and said almost to
herself, "I must have caught a chill."

Alex
slid onto the floor behind her, wrapping her hands around a hot coffee mug.
Setting the cup down, she ran her hands up and down Harriett's arms.

"That
feels good," Harriett breathed as she closed her eyes and leaned her head
back against Alex.

Alex
could smell the freshness of Harriett's hair as she stared at the glowing fire
and continued to stroke her arms, allowing her hands to take on a life of their
own as they moved to encircle Harriett's waist.

"Warmer
now?" Alex asked as she felt Harriett's body relax.

She
looked up at Alex and smiled. "Almost," she answered.

THE
GLOW FROM the fire danced across Harriett's back as she slept. Alex watched the
smooth rise and fall of her back as she breathed evenly. Her skin had felt like
new velvet wherever Alex touched it, and she longed to touch it again. She
marveled at the flawless beauty of Harriett's body as she leaned down and
brushed hair away from Harriett's face and neck. Smiling at the peaceful look
on her lover's face, she remembered the intensity and passion in her eyes only
two hours earlier. No, submissive would never be a word anyone could apply to
Harriett. She gave herself freely and completely, but never as less than an
equal.

Alex
softly kissed Harriett's shoulders and back until she felt her body begin to
awaken. When she looked at Harriett's face, eyes still closed, a smile forming
on her sensuous lips, Alex said, quietly, "I didn't mean to wake
you."

"Yes,
you did!” Harriett said as she rolled lazily onto her side, reached up and
lightly stroked Alex's face with her fingertips.

WHEN
HARRIETT OPENED her eyes again, the sun was shining, and she had no idea what
time it was. She had refused to buy a clock for the cabin and always left her
wristwatch in the car. Alex wasn't in the bedroom, and Harriett swung her legs
over the side of the bed and found her robe lying next to her house shoes.
Wandering slowly through the cabin, Alex was nowhere to be seen. Next to the
coffeemaker, she finally found a note that read "Gone Fishing."

Smiling
to herself, she poured a cup of coffee and returned to the bedroom to dress.
When they had first met, Alex hadn't been fishing since she was a child. Now
when they were at the cabin, she enjoyed sitting at the edge of the pier. Fish
big enough to keep rarely ventured that close to shore, but it was exciting to
catch the smaller ones that teased at your line and usually made off with the
bait before you could hook them. Alex had probably gotten to the cabin early
enough the day before to bait the area around the pier, and Harriett could
picture her as she tried to coax something to take a big enough piece of her
hook to make a catch.

From
the porch, Harriett saw Alex casting her line. Carrying two cups of coffee, she
joined Alex, bending down to kiss her.

"Catch
anything?" she asked.

"A
couple of minnows and a guppy," Alex grinned as she took the cup.

"Wow,
the big ones. Did you save any for me?"

"A
few, but I thought you'd sleep longer. It's only..." Alex began.

"Don't
tell me," Harriett said holding up her hand. "I don't care what time
it is until Sunday."

MID-AFTERNOON
SUNDAY, Harriett walked with Alex to her car as she loaded her suitcase into
the trunk.

"Too
bad this wasn't a longer weekend," Harriett said.

Alex
looked out at the lake and said, "Too bad Gwen will be home tonight."